The gun rights debate in Saugerties

Lisa Cornell said she was disappointed that the SAFE Act resolution was placed on the agenda on the day of the meeting. And, while the Fish and Game club was aware that the motion was coming up, there was no notification for people who may have been opposed to the act. “It should be debated in a public forum,” she said.

Auguste VanEtten said the AR-15 semiautomatic rifle has been demonized by the press, which gives inaccurate information about the weapon. He also said that while he has never been accused of a felony, “this law, overnight, has made me into a criminal.”

Voice of dissent

“The SAFE Act was passed in response to some horrific events that involved automatic weapons,” said Lanny Walter. “Democrats, Republicans and the governor passed legislation in New York State. As I read the law, it does not take away what people have. There are many nuances that I don’t fully appreciate, and I don’t deny what some people have said, but the thrust of it is not to confiscate weapons but to try to reduce the volume of rapid fire weapons in circulation; not because they will be misused by law-abiding people but because they either fall into the hands of someone like Adam Lanza, or other people steal them, or children take them. Be that as it may, you are being asked to pass a resolution that says that that law is unlawful. ”

Whether the law is lawful is for the courts to decide, Walter said. “Without you studying that law, and getting your own legal opinion, you’re not in a position as a governmental body to make that kind of resolution.” While he agreed that the law was passed in haste, and could have benefitted from more public discussion, Walter told the board that “I think you need to take yourselves seriously and not just flow with the crowds, so to speak, when it comes to something as serious as the violence in our country.“

Myers said she had been informed that a group of people were coming to the meeting to voice their concerns, but “I didn’t call anybody to say, ‘it’s ready now, come and support it.’ Those of you who might think I made phone calls to bring in a crowd, that’s not the case.”

Myers said people should let her know if the resolution needs anything added, or anything removed, before final passage. “This is a democratic process.”

Town costs

The gun law could affect the cost of police services and other town costs, Myers said. While initially basing the resolution on a recently-passed county law regarding gun ownership, Myers added provisions she felt applied particularly to the town of Saugerties.

One provision of the resolution, which notes that the state law “severely impacts the possession and use of firearms now employed and forsakes forms of recreation including, but not limited to, hunting and target shooting,” is especially relevant to Saugerties, Myers said, “as I know many people in Saugerties who actually supplement the support of their families through hunting. That is a wonderful skill and economic benefit to the town, and I wouldn’t want to see it ended.”

The law was a response to a horrific act, Myers said, adding that the sight of a slain child her daughter’s age really upset her. “But what we need to do is make a measured response to plan for protection, and that’s what we’re doing here in Saugerties.”

The law fails to compensate municipalities that would have to provide new weapons to their officers whose guns now hold 11 rounds, as well as the disposal cost of the weapons that have been redefined as illegal, Myers said.

Police perspective

Police Chief Joseph Sinagra, while acknowledging that no police force can guarantee that it can prevent every school shooting, said Saugerties is working to ensure that all its officers are fully trained in dealing with dangerous situations. They have attended training classes sponsored by the federal government in how to mitigate the active shooter, he said.

“Now we’re going to take all that training and we’re going to put it into a practical exercise on March 27 at Cahill Elementary School.”

Despite the provisions in the state law banning such weapons as the AR15 semiautomatic rifle, Sinagra said, the Saugerties Police would be issued the weapon in response to a hostage situation, because “that is the preferred weapon of choice to mitigate these situations.”

In response to a question about whether police would maintain armed guards at the schools, Sinagra said that would be very expensive. Police officers will be conducting random visits to all the schools and State Police and the Ulster County Sheriff’s Department will be doing the same.

Councilman Fred Costello pointed out that there is, in fact, a trained officer in the schools; the School Resource Officer, who is trained in dealing with these situations.

Costello declined to comment on the resolution until he has a chance to read it in detail. The board did not see a copy before the meeting, so it would be premature to comment at this time, he said.

The next Town Board meeting will be Wednesday, March 20 at 8 p.m. at the senior center on Market St.